Tomb Raider Guide | How to Earn XP and Unlock Skills

Each time you reach a new experience level by earning the necessary number of points, you can unlock one of three categories of skills in Tomb Raider. This guide describes the skill system and how to accrue experience points.

Experience Points' Primary Sources

By completing different goals and tasks, you can accrue experience points. Completing assigned tasks, which typically award 100 XP, is one of the most important sources of XP, though more significant missions can award up to 1000 XP.

These points are awarded for each enemy killed; more points are awarded for spectacular actions like headshots, surprise attacks, or stealth kills.

Exploring optional tombs is highly profitable, as reaching the treasure chest in each tomb grants 1250 XP. Finding secrets provides between 5 and 25 XP, depending on the category.

Completing secret sets, such as collecting all relic vases, awards an additional bonus ranging from 150 to 500 XP.

Secondary Sources of Experience Points

Experience points can also be obtained through less prominent actions. Killing and harvesting animals provides a bonus that varies by species, usually from a few to several dozen XP.

Note that in each major island location, you can hunt animals until you receive a notification about "cleansing" the hunting area; after this, each kill awards only 1 XP. Finding orange boxes and locating interactive plants also grants experience.

Skills That Increase Experience Gain

Several skills described later in the guide increase the XP earned for specific actions, such as killing enemies with headshots or harvesting animals.

It is beneficial to unlock these skills early to maximize your experience point accumulation from the beginning.

Spending Skill Points

Once you have earned enough XP to reach a new experience level, you must visit any discovered campsite.

Select the first tab from the list to access the skill menu and spend your skill point. There is no urgency to spend the point immediately; an unspent skill point is retained indefinitely.

Also, check our Tomb Raider (2013) Review and Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition Review, and other guides below.

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